


Addendum

by quills_at_dawn



Series: Squirrels and Vipers Under the Great Sun [2]
Category: Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2019-04-11
Packaged: 2019-05-09 05:00:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 2,426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14709537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quills_at_dawn/pseuds/quills_at_dawn
Summary: Additional materials, including character lists and maps.





	1. Overview

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quick overview of lore and world-building since the universe is spread over so many (contradictory) medias.

  ****

**OVERVIEW**

 

 _from_ The Art of the Witcher: Gwent Gallery Collection

* * *

 

**WITCHER UNIVERSE**

 

For those who are new to the Witcher franchise and those who feel they'd like a refresher, [Polygon has a Witcher Primer](https://www.polygon.com/2015/5/18/8620223/witcher-3-guide-witcher-2-witcher). 

For the very committed and very smitten, playthroughs for 

  * [the main game by Mr. Odd](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLj_Goi54wf0fQPWB_hjgmd3i1yIXeLXHI)
  * [Blood and Wine (Toussaint expansion) by Gopher](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLE7DlYarj-DfjFWcf32-kdz-k35UOcRvF)



The events of the fic start after the events of The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings and before The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. It broadly follows canon for W2 though it takes elements from both Iorveth's and Roche's paths. 

Heavily based on W2 and W3 but also draws on elements from W1, Gwent cards and some of the book lore, as well as on [astolat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/astolat)'s world-building in her own [Witcher fics](https://archiveofourown.org/series/621487) (which I highly recommend). The borrowing is pretty indiscriminate but there'll be quite a bit of exposition at the beginning to just clarify the main points. 

Huge liberties have been taken with existing lore concerning Nilfgaard and foreign lands like Ofier, Haakland, etc. This is partly because there isn't too much there and partly because I wanted to break away from the slightly monolithic world-building (everything is a kingdom is a kingdom is a kingdom. Except the Empire). Ofier is now a tetrarchy, consider yourselves warned. 

Deep knowledge of the lore is not necessary (and virtually impossible anyway) and I've tried to be as clear as possible without massive info dumps but I'm happy to clarify and answer questions in comments :D 

 

For the purposes of this fic, there is not and never was a false Cirilla. 

At the end of the Second War, Ciaran, along with Iorveth and Isengrim, escaped the slaughter of the officers of the Vrihedd Brigade.

 

Characterisations are mostly based on the game versions.  

 

 


	2. Personae Dramatis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who's Who

**PERSONAE DRAMATIS**

**et al.**

 

**EMPIRE OF NILFGAARD**

  * Emhyr var Emreis —Emperor of the Nilfgaardian Empire
  * Morvran Voorhis — general, commander of the Alba Division of the Nilfgaardian army
  * Evrard var Cleef — brigadier-general of the Impera Brigade
  * Bastiaan aep Larsen —Alba cavalry spearman
  * Mererid — imperial chamberlain



 

  * Havart van Moehorn — field marshal of the Nilfgaardian army
  * Shilard Fitz-Oesterlen — Ambassador to Gwyngaard
  * Henry var Attre — Ambassador to Novigrad



 

  * Menno Coehorn — former field marshal of the Nilfgaardian army (deceased) 
  * Prince Joachim de Wett — nobleman, commander of the Verden Operations Group (deceased) 
  * Duke Ardal aep Dahy — nobleman, politician, member of the Guild of Merchants, commander of the East Army Group (deceased) 



 

  * Prince Voorhis — Prince of the Blood, politician, leading member of the Guild of Merchants, father of Klaervy and Morvran Voorhis 
  * Berenger Leuvaarden — nobleman, member of the Guild of Merchants, imperial envoy
  * Declan Leuvaarden — member of the Guild of Merchants, resident of Vizima



 

  * Edna var Attre — daughter of Henry var Attre, twin sister of Rosa var Attre
  * Sir Rainfarn of Attre — tourney champion



 

**ELFGAARDIANS**

  * Phaendril 
  * Ombryn 
  * Aelrindel — a savant 



 

**AEN SEIDHE**

  * Iorveth — Scoia’tael unit commander
  * Ciaran aep Easnillien/aep Nilfgaard — Iorveth’s lieutenant and later imperial concubine
  * Elihal — tailor



 

**WITCHERS**

  * Geralt of Rivia — witcher of the School of the Wolf
  * Letho of Gulet — witcher of the School of the Viper (deceased)



 

**THE FOUR KINGDOMS**

  * RadovidV (aka “The Stern”) — King of Redania
  * Foltest — King of Temeria (deceased)
  * Henselt — King of Kaedwen (deceased)
  * Demavend V — King of Aedirn (deceased)



 

**KINGDOM OF TEMERIA**

  * Vernon Roche — commander of the Blue Stripes, Temeria’s special forces unit
  * Ves — Vernon Roche’s lieutenant



 

  * Baron Orvall La Valette — great-uncle of Anaïs La Valette, Foltest’s illegitimate daughter
  * Anaïs La Valette — Foltest’s illegitimate daughter by the Baroness La Valette, Maria Louisa
  * Aryan La Valette — Baroness La Valette’s eldest son by the Baron La Valette
  * Herevard II — Prince of Ellander



 

  * Bernard Loredo — commandant of Flotsam (deceased) 



 

**KINGDOM OF REDANIA**

  * Dandelion — Baron of Lettenhove, bard, womaniser, general layabout



 

**PROVINCE OF AEDIRNIA**

  * Saskia — variably The Dragonslayer, The Virgin of Aedirn, Saesenthessis the dragon, and leader of the Springtime of Races



 

**FREE CITY OF NOVIGRAD**

  * Maria Louisa La Vallette — (estranged) wife (or widow?) of Baron La Valette, once Foltest’s mistress
  * Sigismund Dijkstra — crime lord, former head of Redanian special forces



 

**DUCHY OF TOUSSAINT**

  * Anna-Henrietta — Duchess of Toussaint
  * Damien de la Tour — head of the Ducal Guard
  * Eugène de la Faisanderie — marquis and member of the Ducal High Council
  * Rafael de Surmann — Ducal Camerlengo 
  * Maugrim Poullain — Undersecretary for Threats and Risk Management 



 

**CIARAN'S ATTENDANTS**

  * Synnøve — captured Skelliger 
  * Jayne — Aedirnian lady's maid taken from Vengerberg castle 
  * Ludivine — Cintran noble lady 
  * Arley — valet taken from Vengerberg castle  



 

**THE STABLES**

  * Hastae Martiae —Emhyr's destrier 
  * Smeriglia — Morvran's palfrey
  * Philotimo — var Cleef's horse
  * an-Nayyir — Ciaran's horse 
  * al-Maysan — an-Nayyir's sire 
  * Argamak — an-Nayyir's dam 



 


	3. Elder Speech and Dialects

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Translations for terms in Elder Speech (Hen Llinge) and other Dialects, names and other obscure terms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mostly for personal reference, most terms will be either explained in the text or by a footnote.

****

**HEN LlINGE**

**&**

**General Glossary**

 

**NON-CANON TERMS**

  * Ard Vesaevus — Great Unquenchable or Great Hearth (Nilfgaardian) 
  * Dol Gwennelen — Valley of Alabaster (Elder Speech) 
  * Elyennen — spark (from Breton: elyenenn; elienenn) (Elder Speech) 
  * Elyennenin — little spark (Nilfgaardian dialect)
  * Elyennenic — barely perceptible spark (Elder Speech, archaic)
  * Inis Mor'hwess — Island of Mist (Nilfgaardian)
  * Insínhaare — Islet of Sea Mist (Nilfgaardian) 
  * Stirwen — white star (from Breton) 



 

**HEN LlINGE (Elder Speech)**

  * Aen Elle — Alder Folk 
  * Aen Saevherne — Sage 
  * Aen Seidhe — Hill Folk 
  * dol — valley 
  * salah — to pray (From Arabic: صَلَّى (ṣallā))
  * scoia'tael — squirrel(s) (From Italian: scoiattolo)
  * Squass'me — Excuse me; forgive me
  * va faill — goodbye, farewell
  * vatt'ghern — witcher
  * -wen — white (also as gwyn/gwen) (From Welsh: Wen/wyn)
  * woed, woéd, woedd — wood; forest (From Welsh: Coed/Coedwig) 



 

**NILFGAARDIAN**

  * Aecáemm aen me — Follow me
  * deithwen — white flame
  * dh'oine — human
  * E'er y glòir — Honor and glory
  * Esse'lath seiâ'fyll — Loose formation
  * Ker'zaer — Emperor 
  * seiâ'fyll — formation
  * sheyss — dammit
  * Glòir aen Ker'zaer — Glory to the Emperor
  * Hael Ker'zaer — Long live the emperor
  * Se'ege na tuvean — Victory or death 
  * Tuvean y gloir — Death and glory



  
  
**ELLYLON**

  * dearg — red 
  * ruadhri — riders, horsemen



 

**DRYADIC**

  * sidh — elf (Aen Seidhe) 



 

**PROPER NAMES**

  * Aevon y Pont ar Gwennelen — River of Alabaster Bridges 
  * Aymm Rhoin — Elven naming ritual
  * Caed Myrkvid — Myrkvid Forest/Grove  
  * Conynhaela — a magical cure which enables the rapid regeneration damaged or broken bones
  * Dol Blathanna — Valley of the Flowers 
  * Gwynbleidd — White Wolf (From Welsh: Blaidd Gwyn)
  * Hen Ichaer — Elder Blood 
  * Tir ná Béa Arainne — elven cemetery under Mount Gorgon 
  * Xin'trea — Cintra 



 

**PLACES**

  * Fort Zivelina — Military base (Metinna) 
  * Fort Torres — Military base 
  *  — Military academy (Nilfgaard) 
  * Ostzeebad — Naval academy (Nilfgaard) 
  * Vlissinghen — Naval base (Nazair) 



 

**PHRASES**

  * Ayd f'haeil moen Hirjeth taenverde. — Conquer with courage rather than strength.
  * Glaeddyvan vort! — Drop the swords!



 

 **LATIN**  

  * divide et impera — divide and conquer 
  * jus ad bellum — a just war 



 

 


	4. Maps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Where's Where?

**MAPS**

* * *

 

**The North**

(hi-res, animated version [here](https://thewitcher.com/en/map))

 

(super hi-res version [here](https://i.imgur.com/vPvPsd9.jpg))

 

 **The Pontar Valley**  

 

 

 **The West Coast**  

 (alternate version [here](https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9wkPHeEwGZnWC1qdEh4aVZKWVk/view?usp=sharing))

 


	5. A/B/O Dynamics & elven reproduction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elves, dwarves, and humans. Alphas, betas, and omegas. The North, the South, and Across the Water.

**Who Has ABO Dynamics?**

Elves and related species have abo dynamics but dwarves and humans do not. 

Most elves are betas, there are a few alphas and very very few omegas. 

Only pureblood elves are ever born omegas. 

Half-elves, quadroons, etc, may or may not present a dynamic (as in, be alphas or betas), it varies from individual to individual and appears to have no bearing on the amount of elven blood possessed by the individual. 

 

**The Physiological Particulars**

Female and omega elves go through an oestrus cycle in which the endometrium is completely reabsorbed (i.e. no periods, no cramping). Their heats are an increase in libido that signals a period of fertility which can last anything from a few hours to several days. They are not regular but are triggered and influenced by a complicated and mysterious combination of physical and emotional factors. Gestation usually takes about 12 months. 

Basically, a lot of sex happens and sometimes there's a baby. 

 

 

**The Cultural Particulars**

Because elves are promiscuous and the identity of an elven child born is usually unknown, elves have developed as a matrilineal society. Children are raised communally by alphas, betas and omegas according to inclination. They do not traditionally have gender-assigned social roles and are largely gender-fluid and pansexual. Their hermaphroditic omegas are valued because they epitomise this fluidity and personify their search for oneness. 

 

 

 


	6. Elven Calendar

**THE ELVEN CALENDAR**

 

 

 

 

 


	7. The Second Northern War & the Peace of Cintra

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Primer on the Second Northern War and the Peace of Cintra. More or less. Game canon and book canon and maps don't always coincide but consider this canon for the fic...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The events of the Second War are fiendishly complicated (especially when it comes to military manoeuvres, which I have no head for) so I've reduced this down to what is necessary for context in this fic, particularly in how it impacts the history between Emhyr and the North and Emhyr and the elves.  
> Note that this only contains what is generally known in the universe and that Ciaran himself would know…

**THE SECOND WAR & THE PEACE OF CINTRA**

 

_The map above shows how things stand just before the start of the Third War, but, contested areas aside, it fairly accurately shows the status quo after the Peace of Cintra._

_There is a super hi-res version[here](https://i.imgur.com/vPvPsd9.jpg) that shows everything in fantastic detail but be warned, it's a 23MB file)_

 

**— THE FIRST WAR —**

_(1262—63)_

Broadly, Nilfgaard launches an attack on Cintra that culminates in the Slaughter of Cintra (also known as the Massacre of Cintra in the North, and less dramatically in the South as the Battle of Cintra), during which Queen Calanthe commits suicide and the capital is razed.

Though it keeps Cintra, Nilfgaard ultimately loses the war when it is defeated at the Battle of Sodden Hill, largely because of the powerful magic users fighting for the North.

 

**— THE SECOND WAR —**

_(July 1267 — April 1268)_

The main bone of contention prior to the start of the Second War (the Second Northern War, as it is known by the Northerners, or the Second Nordling War, as it is known by Southerners) was Cintra, which Nilfgaard had acquired during the First War.

Cintra gave Nilfgaard a further foothold in the North, one that they could quite readily resupply by ship and by land and the Northern kings fear that Nilfgaard will use it as a forward base from which to launch further attacks on the North. They meet in Hagge castle (helpfully shown in the wrong place on the map as it is not in Temeria but in Aedirn, probably about halfway between Flotsam and the throne) where they plot to retake Cintra but making it look like Nilfgaard was the aggressor.

Word of this plan reaches Emhyr and he quietly begins moving large numbers of troops into Dol Angra in preparation (the valley of Dol Angra runs broadly from the A of Angren up to the Pontar river via Aldersberg, Vengerberg, etc). In order to avoid a repeat of his defeat at Sodden Hill, Emhyr enlists the help of Nilfgaard's magic users, one of whom is Francesca Findabair (the elven sorceress), and the Scoia’tael. They plan the Thanedd Coup, intended to neutralise the Northern mages and sorceresses before the fighting begins. King Vizimir II of Redania is killed by an elven assassin, a Lyrian fort is attacked, and the Second War starts in chaos.

Initially, Nilfgaard dominates and its troops go up the Dol Angra valley into the Pontar valley. Meanwhile, Kaedweni troops out of Ban Gleán sweep into Aedirn from the north and reach the Dyfne river. Nilfgaard and Kaedwen agree to divide up Aedirn between them along that line. Emhyr then grants Dol Blathanna to the elves under the leadership of Francesca Findabair (also known as Enid an Gleanna, the Daisy of the Valleys) and Filavandrel aén Fidháil (King of the Elves of the Blue Mountains).

King Ervyll of Verden effectually capitulates to Emhyr, Emhyr signs a truce with Foltest and Foltest’ forces take Hagge castle (still in Aedirn). Sixteen days later, Emhyr breaks the truce and his forces attack Temeria. One supposes this gave King Henselt of Kaedwen something to think about.

_Vrihedd Dragoons_

Things die down over the winter and Emhyr plans a Spring Offensive aggressively targeting Temeria. Things start to go wrong for Nilfgaard, partly because of organisational problems such as stretched supply lines, but particularly because of the insubordination and ineptitudes of people such as Ardal aep Dahy (on the eastern front) and Joachim de Wett (on the western front) who effectively leave undefended entire flanks of the Center Army Group (commanded by Menno Coehorn and of which the Vrihedd bridgade was a part).

The Northerners eventually band together and push back. Geralt helps the ousted Queen Meve of Lyria at the Battle for the Bridge and thus earns himself a knighthood and the title ‘of Rivia’. The Battle of Brenna marks a complete reversal of the situation. King Foltest leads Temerians and Redanians against Nilfgaard's Center Group and this results in a catastrophic defeat for Nilfgaard. Encouraged by the victory, the Northerners launch a counter-offensive and take advantage of the disarray of the Nilfgaardian troops as discipline, communications, and joined-up strategic thinking all break down. Joint Aedirnian and Kaedweni forces retake Aedirn, Lyria is liberated. Temerian forces retake Brugge, Verden, and Lower Sodden, and eventually Kaedweni forces march into Dol Angra.

A truce is called.

 

**— THE PEACE OF CINTRA —**

_(2 April 1268)_

The peace talks and the ensuing peace treaty are as much about re-establishing peace among the Northern kingdoms as it is about normalising relations between North and South. The initial unity the Northern monarchs displayed in Hagge before the war went by the board fairly quickly after the fighting started and certain kingdoms took advantage of the chaos to do a light spot of invading of their own (Kaedwen, I mostly mean Kaedwen, although Temeria is not entirely innocent either).

Shilard Fitz-Oesterlen heads the Nilfgaardian delegation representing Emhyr. They agree to pull troops and colonists out of Brugge and Lyria (but get to keep Cintra for Reasons). The most serious damage is reputational and internal. The empire is no longer seen as an indestructible and invincible force and the many defeats resulted in the death or execution of many key figures in the army’s high command.

Nilfgaard's influence having been greatly diminished, Dol Blathanna is demoted to an allod of Aedirn (and Francesca Findabair is demoted from queen to duchess), its population is to be repatriated and resources are to be divided up between humans and elves. The Scoia'tael commanders are to be tried as war criminals by the Northerners but they are guaranteed fair trials resulting in either lenient sentences or amnesties.

The major theatres of war — southern Temeria, parts of Aedirn, and most of the territories just north of the Yaruga (Lyria, etc) — have suffered enormous levels of destruction to buildings, infrastructureand industry and will require reconstruction on a massive scale.

Redania and Kaedwen saw no fighting on their own territories and so face the least cost of war. As a reflection of this, they make no territorial gains as a result of the peace treaty. Redanian and Temerian forces are to withdraw from Hagge, and Kaedwen returns Upper Aedirn to King Demavend (who frankly did little to deserve it, the twit). Upper Aedirn will continue to be hotly contested.

Riverdell, Sodden and Angren become Temerian provinces, representing a significant territorial gain for Foltest whose kingdom is now bordered by both the Pontar and the Yaruga, two of the North's most significant waterways.

 

On the 13th of September, 1269, fifty-five Vrihedd officers are handed over to Northern troops. Fifty-two of them are executed and their bodies dumped in the Ravine of the Hydra.

 

_[The Slaughter of Cintra](https://witcher.fandom.com/wiki/Slaughter_of_Cintra) _

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Questions welcome!


End file.
